Marc Bulger wheeled and dealed. Steven Jackson was a runaway freight train. Torry Holt made some tough catches. Isaac Bruce, Randy McMichael and Drew Bennett chipped in.

So this is how it's supposed to look.

The Rams offense, which had gone 29 series and 131 plays without a touchdown, clicked in a big way Sunday in the early going of the team's loss to Cleveland.

On the first drive alone, Jackson had his longest run of the year (22 yards), and Holt had the longest pass play of the season (39 yards) by a Rams receiver. On third-and-1 from the Cleveland 2, Jackson scored the Rams' first rushing touchdown of the season.

There was more of the same on the second series, with Bulger throwing a 1-yard TD pass to Holt, capping a 71-yard march. The Rams, who had not led by more than seven points in any game this season, suddenly found themselves up 14-0.

Let the good times roll.

"Steven was hungry today," tight end Randy McMichael said. "He was running like a wild beast. We were matching the intensity of the way he was running the ball, and it just rubbed off on the whole team.

"And then he's out."

That's right. After missing the previous four games with a groin injury, Jackson left with back spasms late in the first quarter. He did not return. Slowly but surely, the intensity, energy and productivity of the St. Louis offense began to wane. Meanwhile, a young, talented Cleveland offense clicked in, scoring on five straight possessions from late in the first quarter through early in the fourth.

By the time the Rams' defense regrouped, Cleveland had a 27-20 lead, which proved to be the final score Sunday at the Edward Jones Dome. The Rams' last gasp ended at the Cleveland 28, which is where Browns cornerback Leigh Bodden intercepted a Bulger pass with 38 seconds remaining. It was the only turnover of the day — for either team.

"Nobody in the building, I doubt if anybody in St. Louis County, thought we were going to be 0-8," Rams offensive tackle Alex Barron said.

Or St. Louis city, the Metro East area, the Show-Me State — or really, any NFL fan anywhere. But as the players like to say, it is what it is. And it's 0-8. At the halfway point of the season, the Rams remain 0-for-2007 entering their bye week.

"It's tough," Bulger said. "It's tough for me. It's tough for guys who have won Super Bowls."

"I never thought I would be in this position of 0-8," said Holt, one of the handful of Rams remaining from the 1999 Super Bowl championship squad. "With the talent level that we have here on this football team this year, we were definitely expecting a better record than where we are right now. But here we are."

It matched the longest losing streak for the franchise since the move to St. Louis in 1995. (The '97 Rams lost eight in a row during Dick Vermeil's first season as head coach.)

"I did not see this coming," said center Andy McCollum, another Super Bowl XXXIV vet. "I don't think anybody did. But whether you saw it coming or not, I don't think it's going to make it any better."

Offensively, the Rams couldn't get anything going on the ground once Jackson left the game. They averaged 5.1 yards a carry with Jackson carrying the ball, and 2.4 yards per attempt with someone else carrying it.

Without Jackson to worry about, the Browns (4-3) were able to play zone coverage and clamp down on the Rams' receivers.

"When he's in the game, (defenses) have to come down and play 8-man boxes," Holt said. "It gives us an opportunity to have some one-on-ones on the outside. It takes a little bit of pressure off the offensive line — a lot of pressure off the offensive line.

"When he goes out, everybody wants to go back to the conventional Cover 2. And say, 'Hey, we're going to make you beat us with the ground game. We're not going to let those guys on the outside beat us.' "

The absence of Jackson was particularly glaring in two short-yardage situations. Leading 14-3 early in the second quarter, the Rams faced a third-and-1 on the Cleveland 33. But two runs by rookie Brian Leonard — Jackson's backup — resulted in no gain, and Cleveland took over on downs.

With 2 minutes 33 seconds left in the game, and St. Louis trailing 27-20, the Rams once again faced a third-and-1 situation, this time from the Cleveland 16. Once again, Leonard was stopped twice for no gain with the Browns taking over on downs.

Leonard appeared to have no running room on any of those plays. But he blamed himself.

"Fourth-and-1, it's really up to the back to get the first down," Leonard said. "No matter how good the blocking is, you've got to get a yard. And I didn't do that."

And the Rams didn't get a win. Again.

jthomas@post-dispatch.com | 314-340-8197